KL Rahul breaks silence on Lucknow Super Giants exit, ex-LSG captain says ‘...I could find some freedom’

Sanjiv Goenka’s animated outburst on KL Rahul after Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) humiliating defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024 clearly stated things weren’t well inside the four walls of the franchise dressing room. Following that incident, the video of which went viral on social media, it was certain that LSG won’t be retaining Rahul for IPL 2025, which eventually turned out to be true as the franchise announced Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi and Mohsin Khan before the mega auction.

With the IPL 2025 mega auction around the corner, the India batter has finally opened up on his LSG exit, stating he wanted to go to a place where he could find freedom. “I wanted to start fresh, I wanted to explore my options and I wanted to go and play where I could find some freedom, the team atmosphere would be lighter,” Rahul told Star Sports in their show Unplugged, the teaser of which has been posted on social media.

Having started his IPL career with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Rahul then played for Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) before landing at LSG in 2022 as a captain. During his years at the franchise, Rahul led the side to playoffs in 2022 and 2023 season before the franchise finished seventh in the previous edition.

However, Goenka’s publicly animated chat with Rahul earned speculations about the India star’s relationship with the franchise. The India batter even met Goenka in August, much of which didn’t come out in public. Although the LSG owner called Rahul a ‘family’, the 31-year-old’s recent comments finally gave a clear picture.

Rahul opined one needs to move on and find ‘something good’ for yourself. “Sometimes you need to move away and find something good for yourself,” he added. Already a captaincy option, Rahul will be on hot property at the IPL 2025 auction with atleast four teams looking for a leader.

Rahul targets IPL 2025 for India comeback The upcoming tournament also provides a great platform for his comeback into the Indian T20I side. The last time Rahul played a T20I for India was in 2022 against England. “I have been out of the T20 team and I know where I stand as a player and I know what I need as a player to get back. So I look forward to this IPL season to give me that platform to go back and enjoy my cricket. My aim is obviously to get back into the T20 team,” he added.

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